Denis McGinley (born 27 April 1945) is an Irish former
Fine Gael
Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil ...
politician who served as a
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...
from 2011 to 2014. He served as a
Teachta Dála
A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parli ...
(TD) for the
Donegal South-West constituency from 1982 to 2016.
Background
McGinley was born and brought up in
Gweedore
Gweedore ( ; officially known by its Irish language name, ) is an Irish-speaking district and parish located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of County Donegal in the north-west of Ireland. Gweedore stretches some from Glasserchoo in the ...
,
County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...
, a
Gaeltacht
( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home.
The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially recog ...
area where he still resides. He was educated at Coláiste Íosagáin,
Ballyvourney
Ballyvourney ( ga, Baile Bhuirne , meaning 'Town of the Beloved', also spelled ) is a Gaeltacht village in southwest County Cork, Ireland. It is a civil parish in the barony of Muskerry West, and is also an ecclesiastical parish in the Roman Cat ...
,
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...
;
St Patrick's College, Dublin; and
University College Dublin
University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
where he received a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree. He worked as a teacher and principal at Scoil Chonaill at
Bunbeg
''An Bun Beag'' (anglicised as Bunbeg), meaning "the small river mouth", is a small Gaeltacht village and townland in County Donegal, Ireland. It is officially the smallest townland in ''Gaoth Dobhair'' (Gweedore), but today the name Bunbeg is ...
, Gweedore, before entering into politics.
Political life
McGinley was first elected to
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...
at the
February 1982 general election. During this time he has held a number of Front Bench positions within the party, including Spokesman on Youth Affairs (1987–88), the Gaeltacht (1988–91), the Gaeltacht and Emigrant Welfare (1991–94), Youth Affairs (1994), Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands (2001–02), Defence (2002–04) and Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (2004–07).
McGinley was Chairman of An Comhchoiste don Ghaeilge (
Oireachtas
The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of:
*The President of Ireland
*The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...
Committee on the Irish Language) from 1995 to 1997. He is a former member of the Joint Oireachtas Committees on Social Affairs and on Small Business and is a member of the British Irish Parliamentary Body since 1993.
In June 2006, he announced his intention to retire at the
2007 general election; however, he announced in February 2007, that he had changed his mind, and would stand as he stood a better chance of being elected than the selected candidate. He was re-elected at the
2007 general election,
and again at the
2011 general election.
On 10 March 2011, he was appointed by the
Fine Gael–Labour government as
Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht with special responsibility for
Gaeltacht
( , , ) are the districts of Ireland, individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home.
The ''Gaeltacht'' districts were first officially recog ...
Affairs on the nomination of
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
Enda Kenny
Enda Kenny (born 24 April 1951) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 2011 to 2017, Leader of Fine Gael from 2002 to 2017, Minister for Defence from May to July 2014 and 2016 to 2017, Leader of the Opposition from ...
. He was dropped as a Minister of State in a reshuffle in July 2014. Shortly afterwards, he announced that he would not contest the
2016 general election.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGinley, Dinny
1945 births
Living people
Alumni of St Patrick's College, Dublin
Alumni of University College Dublin
Fine Gael TDs
Heads of schools in Ireland
Irish schoolteachers
Members of the 23rd Dáil
Members of the 24th Dáil
Members of the 25th Dáil
Members of the 26th Dáil
Members of the 27th Dáil
Members of the 28th Dáil
Members of the 29th Dáil
Members of the 30th Dáil
Members of the 31st Dáil
Ministers of State of the 31st Dáil
People from Gweedore
Politicians from County Donegal